Tsar of the Cybermen, Part I
by TDLI
Summary: Russia, 2020. The Tsar rules the world with an iron first alongside his Cyberman allies. Millions toil in Cyber-factories, churning out their war marchine. They are the lucky ones. Amongst this, a single young woman yearns for revenge for the day he had her brother killed. Soon she will meet a man who will change her life. That man is the Doctor. Everything begins here.
1. Prologue

**Hello,**

**This is the first story in a planned series - as it is the first there is still a great deal I am working out. This will therefore not be perfect and I welcome any constructive criticism so improvements can be made.**

**This series features an original Doctor set far in his/her personal future. Obviously I cannot adhere to canon I don't know about yet so there will be inconsistencies with anything that comes out on TV in the meantime.**

**Thanks for stopping by and enjoy!**

_But what is this thing you call time, asked the being._

"_Well," said the Doctor, "someone rather unimaginative could call it a progression of events, sort of things moving along and happening one after the after, rather than all at the same time like they do for you. Someone rather more imaginative could be here all day explaining it."_

_But all things are at the same time. That is the way of the universe, explained the being._

"_Well, your universe certainly. But my universe is very different. There's more than just pure energy there. There's matter, there's people, there's love and loss, and yeah, I suppose there's time." The Doctor paused. "Time. What a strange thing it is."_

_What is love? What is loss? The being was now even more confused._

"_Well, as I explained when we first met, there's more than one being in my universe. There's trillions upon trillions of them. And sometimes we build relationships with other beings. Sometimes it can be love, which is I suppose what happens when you care for someone the maximum... amount?" The Doctor paused. "I'm probably making this harder for you to understand."_

_So if you care for another being, then that is love. But then what is loss?_

"_Well, when you lose another being, one that you love, when you can never see them again or never feel the same way about them again, then... that's loss" The Doctor paused again, only this time with melancholy. "I've certainly had a few of those in my time."_

_Tell me about one, said the being. Tell me about when you've had love and loss._

"_Well love can mean many things. It can mean..." The Doctor stopped himself before he explained romance to the being. That would probably open a whole new can of worms._

"_I'll tell you what. I'll tell you about someone I loved as a friend. One of the dearest friends that I've had in this body. You remember when I explained I've had more than one body?"_

_Of course, said the being. That I understood perfectly. You are, in a way, just as shapeless as I am._

"_Of course" said the Doctor, remembering when he was a white haired man in a scrapyard, when he had a scarf and curly hair, when he had a bow tie and a fez, when he was a blonde woman wearing braces."I suppose I am."_

"_Well, on with the story. It all started in a place called St Petersburg. Great city, smashing canals, you should visit one day. I was in my time ship when I got a rather unwelcome visitor..."_

**Prologue**

**March 2020**

The air was piercingly cold that night, moreso than was even usual for winter in north west Russia. The wind howled and the heavy snow made it difficult to see. It was as inhospitable as anywhere could be, yet on the balcony of a large house, a young man silently stood, his stare fixed onto the distance. A man in his mid twenties, he was tall and powerful looking, who would usually exert a sense of confidence. But his face betrayed that he had no confidence at this time. He was a man who would never admit to fear, but fear was what he felt at that time. And he had good reason to be afraid. They were coming.

Hundreds of men made of metal marched through the snow. Their blank eyes and expressionless faces betrayed nothing of their intentions, but nobody could have doubted their intentions. They had a mission to destroy the Count Dmitri Viatov, and nothing would stop them. It was the will of the Tsar.

Dmitri heard them long before he could have hoped to see them. They were coming. His thoughts turned to sadness, to regret that it had come to this. But they lasted for only a moment before his determination took over. He had to find Anastasia and leave.

He had once been a poor, destitute count, but through hard work and good fortune he had made himself as rich as his father had once been, and one of the few humans that the Tsar allowed to live somewhat freely. But this was changing tonight. His house would usually have been teeming with servants, but he had sent them away as soon as he realised the Tsar wanted him destroyed. They would want him and his heir, there was no point putting good loyal people in danger.

His heir. His sister. The only thing he had left that mattered. As he blasted through the corridors of his house down to the ground floor, he could only think about how he had got her into this. How he had failed her.

"Anastasia," he shouted at the top of his lungs as he practically leapt down the stairs. "They're here. We have to go now."

Waiting for him at the bottom, was a woman in her early twenties. She was nothing like as tall and well built as her brother, but she shared his dark brown hair and lighter brown eyes. Unlike her brother, her face betrayed the fear she felt.

"So soon?" she cried. "How?"

"I don't know, but we don't have time to find out," he replied. "Quickly, your coat.."

"I can put my own coat on, Dmitri." As she put it in, the sound of an explosion rocked the house.

"They've already started firing. Come on, quickly." He grabbed her hand and opened the door into the freezing Russian winter.

The Cyber Leader raised its hand to signal to cease fire. Immediately every Cyberman behind it lowered their wrist weapons. The Cyber Leader turned to its own wrist, where its communicator flared. A voice, one that was distinctly human, came out from the communicator.

"His Majesty needs the girl alive. Anything else can be considered collateral damage. And remember, she doesn't have to be in one piece. As long as she's breathing."

"I obey." The Cyberman spoke in a cold, metallic voice, without the hint of any emotion. It lowered it's communicator, and twitched it's head slightly, sending the commands to every Cyberman there. Seek. Locate. Destroy.

Dmitri and Anastasia Viatov stumbled through the snow. Neither of them could see more than a few feet in front of them, and both of them knew the Tsar's Army would have no such problem. Dmitri knew it was probably fruitless to even try and escape the inevitable. But he had to try, for his sister, if not for him. He also knew Anastasia, always optimistic to the end, would cling to whatever hope she could find.

Anastasia was still clinging to hope. But as they were being battered by wind and snow, knowing that their metallic killers were so close, even she had was losing the hope she had left. She opened her mouth to talk, to tell Dmitri she forgave him, that this wasn't his fault, that-

There was an explosion and Anastasia was blasted off her feet. As she landed on the ground, she knocked her head, and suddenly everything went blurry, and her leg was excruciatingly painful – she must have broken her ankle. She wasn't badly hurt though – the snow cushioned her fall, and besides the explosion was much closer to-

Dmitri! Anastasia stumbled to her feet to find her brother. Her head was spinning and she could barely see. Where was he? She tried calling out his name, but she found herself unable to say the words. And besides, within moments, she had stumbled on the terrible truth.

Her brother lying before her, half his body scorched by the blast and shrapnel lodged in his body. He raised his hand using what must have been the last of his strength.

"_Ana... ana... run..."_

But it was too late. Her ankle meant she couldn't run and even if she could, where would she go? Into the Russian winter to die. All she could do was sit at her brother's broken body and cry as the Cybermen approached. All she could think about as the Cybermen dragged her away were the people who had done this. The people who she swore to herself would suffer.

(-)

"We have her," said the Tsar. He sat in solitude in an office in the Winter Palace, with the only light on his face coming from the computer monitor he sat in front of. Outside, the snowstorm pounded down, covering the ruined city.

"Good," said a voice from the monitor, distorted and unrecognisable. "Keep her within sight. Our plan has only just begun."


	2. To Begin At The Beginning

In the great control room of the ancient time-spaceship known as the TARDIS, the legendary Time Lord known only as the Doctor was arguing with nothing. Or to be precise, he was arguing with the TARDIS, which was of course just as alive as he was, but it's ability to respond to him was rather limited. But the Doctor had to argue with someone. How else was to he intellectually stimulate himself?

The Doctor had lived for thousands of years and had worn countless bodies. Too many for him to count now, his life extended far beyond that of a normal Time Lord. He'd even forgotten why he'd been able to get his last set of regenerations. Throughout his lives there had only been one constant – he always wore the body of a human, a sort of tribute to the planet he loved above all else.

He had had many lives as a woman, but in this one he was a man once again – a caucasian one in his mid fourties, as bland as one could possibly look. His clothes reflected this – a simple black suit with a white shirt and no tie (he **hated **ties). His dark brown hair was of average length and his face betrayed his experience and his wisdom but little else. His objective in this life was to be inconspicuous, to blend in. Standing out is all well and good, but sometimes wanting things to be a little quiet is no bad thing.

Of course, that was what things were like in public. In private, in the comfort of his own TARDIS, he could argue with himself until he was out of breath and nobody would care.

"... Not only was I entirely within my rights to do so, I had the situation perfectly under control until that gun slinging idiot arrived. I warned him, but did he list-"

He was interrupted by the blaring of an alarm on the console.

"What the hell is that?" the Doctor asked? "Don't tell me – I've been pulled into an intradimensional wormhole. Again."

He grabbed one of the screens attached to the console and swung it round, before starting intently at the screen.

"Not too far off actually. It seems I'm crossing the threshold of a-"

"Trans-reality barrier, Doctor. You're heading into another universe," finished a voice behind him.

The Doctor spun around to find himself face to face with a figure standing in the control room with him. She was wearing the familiar robes and headdress of a Time Lord.

"Oh great. I assume this is all your fault then," grimaced the Doctor.

"In a manner of speaking," the Time Lord replied. "We have a job for you."

"Of course you do," the Doctor groaned. "Has the President missed his milk delivery again?"

She ignored him and carried on. "We have found out that our universe is in mortal danger from the one you are about to enter."

"How?"

"There is... an anomaly."

The Doctor frowned. "An anomaly. That's all you have."

"It is impossible for us to find out any more, our data is limited. The first part of what we are asking you to do is to find out precisely if our data is accurate, and if so, what the precise nature of the threat it."

"And the second?"

The Time Lord reached into her pocket and took out a small device. Flicking a switch, the device projected a picture of a young woman.

"The other thing we have been able to discern is that this woman is vitally important."

"You people are so vague. Important how?" said the Doctor.

"Again, we don't-"

"You don't know," grumbled the Doctor. "Anything you do know?"

"That the Cybermen are involved. And that they have allied themselves with a world leader on Earth and cannibalised that world. And that they are very close to finding the power of time travel, and that this woman is key to their carrying out that objective. However that may be."

The Doctor paused for a moment. That was a hell of a lot of information. Thoughts began to race through his mind before he settled upon a first section. "What world leader?"

She flicked another switch and the picture changed to Tsar Nicholas II.

"Ah," said the Doctor, studying the picture intently. "Now that's interesting."

"Interesting or not," said the Time Lord, switching the device off. "I don't have to tell you the damage that would be caused if the Cyberman of that universe were to get time travel abilities. Not only would they be able to dominate that universe...

"They would be able to cross over into this universe and start an intergalatic war that would make the Time War look like a minor disagreement. I think I understand."

"He has her as a prisoner working as a servant. Finding her should not be so difficult for someone of your... abilities. I think you know what you have to do," said the Time Lord bluntly.

"And what if I refuse?" said the Doctor defiantly.

They both stood silently for a moment.

"Oh, right," said the Doctor. "The trans-reality barrier."

"Precisely," said the Time Lord. You don't have much choice, do you?"

"It seems not." he said.

"We are confident you will be able to deal with whatever is thrown at you," the Time Lord smiled. "Good luck Doctor. Oh, and one more thing. Viatov."

"What?" said the Doctor.

"Anastasia Viatov. That's her name. Goodbye, Doctor." And with that, she vanished.

"Whatever is thrown at me indeed," grumbled the Doctor. "Thanks for reminding me precisely why I left." He leapt to the console, in an attempt to delay the inevitable just long enough to make the transition as smooth as possibl-

The TARDIS lurched and sent its pilot flying.

"Now," said the Doctor, rubbing his bruises. "I thought we talked about you doing something like that."

His ship did not reply, although the roaring of its engines meant it was far from silent. The TARDIS was landing. With a roar and a wheeze, the great machine completed its materialisation and silence came across the control room.

"Well, here we are old girl," said the Doctor quietly. "What have we got ourselves into this time?"

He saw little point in hanging around any longer – he grabbed his black trench coat from the coat stand and walked to the door. "Into the lions mouth," he muttered, and stepped out into another world.

(-)

"_You're following me so far?" asked the Doctor._

_You say we are starting at the beginning, said the being._

"_I think so, yeah."_

_But what is the beginning? asked the being. Why do we start there?_

"_Well, that's to do with time. As time moves along, certain events happen, and the chronological first thing to happen in a certain event is when it begins."_

_So a beginning is when all things come together, when the elements that make up love and loss become apparently, enquired the being._

_The Doctor paused. "I suppose so. Funny, I've never thought of it like that."_

_Perhaps I am teaching you new things as well, said the being._

"_Maybe you are. Maybe you are..."_


	3. The Emperor's New Body

he once great city of St Petersburg was now nothing more than a smoky industrial wasteland. Where once beautiful buildings had stood, there were now only giant factories, the city's only human inhabitants toiling within, with black smoke belching 24/7. They littered the cityscape, while the rest of the street pattern was covered in ruins, buildings once having stood proudly now collapsed, broken, destroyed, with the only clues that they once held people decaying away in the ruins. The industrial wasteland had prevented any plant growth, so everything remained grey and forlorn. The only other building in the city that wasn't an empty ruin was the Winter Palace, the home of Russian monarchs for centuries.

It's current inhabitant had been Tsar for nearly a century now. Nicholas II had the mind and appearance of a human, but his body was that of a Cyberman. In February 1917, he was weeks from being deposed, although he was not to know that. But there as no revolution – metal men arrived in Petrograd, along with their Associate, promised him successes and domination if he would join them. There was no debate to be had for him – victory and power, in return for the submission of his body. The Germans were swept away; the domestic opposition followed suit, and Petrograd became St Petersburg once more. Soon, even Russia's former allies were subjugated. Nicholas II was the emperor of not just Russia, but the world.

Over a century had passed. The Tsar had power over the whole Earth, and he certainly regretted nothing. But the world was all it would be until the Doctor arrived. The Associate promised him the Doctor held what was necessary to expand their dominance across space and time itself. The Tsar was not a patient man though. It had been seven months since this plan had begun and the Tsar was wondering why the wait was necessary. The Associate told him so little.

The large room in the Winter Palace he was standing in once boasted decoration fit for an Emperor: now it was empty, it's gold and jewels long stripped away. The rest of the palace retained them, as a reminder of who he once was, but in this room? Business before pleasure. There was nothing that could distract him from the task at hand. All there was within the barren room was the figure of the Tsar himself, watching the ghost of St Petersburg out of the city. A dead city in a dead country in a dead world? Was it all worth it? He tried to expel doubts from his mind, but could never quite do it.

Today was the day it was all to become worth it, at least according to their Associate. Today was the day the Doctor would arrive.

(-)

The Doctor stood on a hill just outside the city of St Petersburg, looking upon the ruins of what was once a great city.

"Gone. Replaced by Cyber factories," The Doctor muttered to himself, partially in shock. And the city was gone – the giant factories towered into the sky, black smoke billowing from their tops. The Doctor scarcely could believe it. Some of the old city remained as ruins, and it seemed there was still life of a sort in the Winter Palace. But otherwise...

"Well, I've been in this universe for a minute and a half and I'm already shocked and appalled." He sighed. He locked the TARDIS behind him, took another shocked looked at the desolate wasteland and began his journey.

The Doctor had reached the ruined streets within a few minutes. Despite all the buildings having collapsed, there was still just about a path to walk through the streets – aside from the odd puddle of toxic sludge, he found there were very few obstacles to avoid. He could therefore concentrate on his surroundings rather than where he was walking, and in that regard there was a great deal to take in. It was the utter silence he found most haunting: the factories themselves were silent from the outside, he didn't doubt it was not the same for the poor souls inside. He had found out from the TARDIS that he was at some point in the early 21st century and that what life the scanners could detect was not life that seemed all that worth living, but other than that, he was in the dark – in some ways, he didn't want to know any more. He could do nothing for those people; not without resources and time he simply didn't have. There was no consolation for this – it ate away at him. He was leaving these people in a living nightmare and he could do nothing. Even if he could, he was far too late to make any meaningful difference anyway. He considered himself not easily shocked any more, but what he was seeing was sickening. Every time he met the Cybermen he thought they couldn't find any more ways to disgust him but every time he was wrong.

The Doctor's quiet reflection was suddenly interrupted. In the corner of his eye, at the side of one of the ruined streets he could just make out a figure. He suddenly turned to spot it – and it was gone. He hadn't seen much of it, but it had been dark, perhaps shrouded in shadow? Or perhaps something else entirely.

"That's odd..." he said to himself quietly. He now had the very distinct feeling that he was being watched. But where from? Who by? He had been following what seemed like the most direct route to the Palace – his plan was to try and find a way in. Seemed simple enough, but if someone was watching him... how much trouble was he in now?

"I know you're there," he yelled out. "I'm happy to talk if you want. We can talk about anything you like: cricket, walks in the north of Scotland, the relativity of time."

Aside from the distant grinding of machinery inside one of the factories, there was silence. A disconcerting silence – the Doctor was liking this less and less with every passing moment.

"Have it your own way," he said. "Just, you know, think about it."

The Doctor started walking again but he only got a few more feet before he began to feel dizzy. His nervousness quickly changed to concerned panic. "What are you doing? Stop, I-" he shouted as darkness came over him. He felt he couldn't stand up straight, and then not at all. His vision was almost gone in a matter of moments.

Falling to the ground, a figure, enveloped in shadow, appeared in front of him. The Doctor could barely see it, or anything for that matter, but he could feel its presence.

"The time is approaching," said a whispering, almost-distant voice.

"T-t-ime?" The force was so overpowering the Doctor was fighting to keep himself conscious, never mind speak. His mind was being crushed and it was taking every single fibre of action he had in his body to fight it. But a force powerful enough to do such a thing to a Time Lord body was a force that would not be held at bay for long.

"The rift will be discovered. The universes will be breached. You, Time Lord, will restore the link."

"I-I-don't-understand," the Doctor managed to say. Why was he not unconscious yet? What was this thing trying to tell him? Questions raced through his mind but they could do little more than that.

"The girl is key. Find her and you begin the sequence," the figure said.

"W-w-w-hat girl?" the Doctor asked with the last of his strength. His last thought before his mental barriers finally dropped was 'Of course, that girl...'

And with that, the Doctor's body slumped onto the ground unconscious. The dark figure looked upon his form for a short while and then vanished. After that, aside from the distant churning of machinery, silence once again filled the empty streets of the ruined city, as the Doctor's body lay almost motionless, save for the soft breathing of his unconscious form.

(-)

The Tsar still stood silently, looking out of the palace window onto the ruined city. The Doctor had not yet arrived at the location they had expected. In fact, the Cyber-Trackers had lost all view of him. His Associate assured him that things would happen as they planned anyway, but the Tsar remained unconvinced. The Associate had never been wrong before, but...

His depth in thought meant he barely noticed the door to the room open. Olga Nikolaevna was the Tsar's oldest child and just like him, her body was no longer human. Thus, despite now being over a century old, she still had the appearance of a woman in her early twenties. But there was nothing youthful about the expression her face wore.

"Father," she called.

He turned to face her. "I told you I wasn't to be disturbed."

"You've been here on your own for an hour already. The plan won't be advanced for a few hours yet. You're just planning here to stand looking at the view all morning?"

"Yes. Now leave me."

"Please yourself," she muttered under her breath. She didn't come in here to please her father: she had long given up in such endeavours. She came in here to see if she was right about how long it would be until the plan was sufficiently advanced. She was right.

She had turned to leave when he spoke up. "Olga, my child..."

She swivelled back. "Yes, father?"

"Do you think this is right? What we are doing?"

"That is up to you and you alone, father. I could not comment."

"Yes. I suppose it is." He turned back to the view outside. Olga could see from his facial expression that he had already made up his mind to what the answer was.

So had she. And she suspected they were not the same.


	4. Resistance of Spirit

Nikolai Makarovich was on his guard. The Resistance was not usually party to making risky journeys into the city – there was far too much of a chance anyone out here would run into a Cyberman patrol fairly quickly. But given they had received a tip-off from a spy that there was a Cyber prison hidden in the ruins at a certain point the city... a prison that might hold any number of their former comrades? It was a no-brainer. And thus he and four other of the Resistance's most capable soldiers had made their way to the location, risking discovery and certain capture or death. And when they arrived? Nothing. The information was wrong or the spy had been compromised. Either way, the five men and women suddenly realised they had just walked into a trap. But after a minute, when the ambush that they thought was inevitable had not come, Nikolai started to suspect all was not what it seemed.

Nikolai was a tall man of 24 years. His hair was a very dark brown which matched well with his eyes – his face, along with his untrimmed beard, betrayed he had spent his entire life fighting, but beneath the broken sternness was the signs that there was a side to him that he did not care for this life. But it was a side he hid well, by necessity. He tired to be friendly when he could, as, unlike Kilensky, he saw no advantage in being feared and disliked, but there was only so far that could be taken when as much was at stake as it was.

He gestured to the others. "We're leaving." Not needing to be told twice, the rest of the squad hurriedly followed him down the ruined street. It wasn't long before he heard a shout from one of his compatriots.

"Makarovich!" she shouted. "Look."

He looked – and saw something he did not expect – a person.

He was male, middle aged, wearing a large black coat and decidedly unconscious. Nikolai briefly surveyed him with confusion – he wasn't dirty and broken so he couldn't have been from one of the factories. He wasn't with the Resistance, he could see that much. Who was he?

"What do we do with him?" one of his fellow soldiers asked him?

"We can't leave him here for the Cybermen," Nikolai replied grimly. "Pick him up."

"What if he's with them?" asked another.

"Then we'll deal with him at base. Do you want to leave him here if he isn't?" Nikolai barked. "We don't have time, pick him up."

A soldier duly obeyed and the party started off again through the ruined streets.

(-)

The Resistance hideout was outside the city – hidden and well defended, it was nevertheless small and primitive, a simple bunker, dug many decades ago. There were hundreds of them distributed across the world, but neither Nikolai nor any of his compatriots knew little of any others. That way, if they were compromised, they couldn't betray any of their fellow cells. As for being compromised, well... this cell was only here so they could coordinate spies within the lion's den. It was close to the action, close enough that every day felt like it was a day closer to their capture and conversion or death. And that was something that Kazonokov had fallen into. He had led them for many years – Nikolai vividly remembered how he had inspired them in hard times. But one day, a few weeks previously, while out on a mission, he had vanished. They were without a strong leader, soldiers were disappearing every day and now they knew their spy network had been compromised. Nikolai could not escape the feeling that the Resistance he knew was in its last days. All things pointed to that... apart from one thing. The strange man they had found on the street. Clearly not either one of them or one of the Cyber workers, was he their salvation? Or was he their doom?

Taking a final look on the electro-scanner for signs of Cybermen, and finding nothing, Nikolai was the final one of the party to enter the bunker. The door closed and the hologram covering it flickered into life once more – one of their many defences, made entirely of stolen Cyber-technology. The ruined landscape was restored to how it was, with not a single clue of the bunker below.

(-)

Kilensky eyed the figure lying unconscious on the table in front of him. He was, like Nikolai, a tall well-built man, but around ten years older and his face was harsh and betrayed no inner peace at all. Unlike Nikolai, he attempted to keep his facial hair in check but did not succeed in doing so. His black hair was now greying: a life of fighting had done that to him, but more importantly, it had also made him short-tempered and impatient. And he had found a situation in which his temper was further shortened and patience further tested.

"Quite brilliant Makarovich," he said dryly. "An obvious Cyber-agent and you bring him straight to us."

"I'm not sure it is obvious, Kilensky" Nikolai grunted in reply. "Have you ever seen an unaugmented Cyber-agent before?"

"No...," said Kilensky.

"And look at his clothes! He's not a worker and he definitely isn't a noble, so who is he?"

"I don't know Makarovich," said Kilensky, getting more annoyed by the moment. "And I don't think I care. You should not have brought him back."

"But what if he's from another cell? What if they have a new weapon? What if-"

"Shut up Makarovich!" shouted Kilensky. "You're a fool. Kill this thing."

"I'd rather you didn't do that," came a voice from the table, startlingly both Kilensky and Nikolai.

The Doctor opened his eyes and sat up. "That was a nice nap. Now, to business."

"Who are you!" Kilensky practically screamed, having wasted no time in yanking his sidearm off his belt and pointing it straight at the Doctor's face.

"I'm the Doctor. I'm afraid I'm neither a Cyber-spy nor a new super-weapon or whatever it was he said. I'm a visitor. I am, however, here to help."

The Doctor surveyed his surroundings. He was in a small concrete bunker, with banks of computers lining almost all the walls. The entire place was dishevelled, practically falling apart. It was approximately double the size of the TARDIS control room and built entirely of concrete. Concrete pillars holding up the roof and a few tables and chairs were the only things breaking the monotony of the inside of the room, while the edges were lined with computers, cabinets and bunks. As for the the people, who sat wearily around the bunker, they seemed just as on their last legs as their home was.

"And you look like you might need it," he said as he lifted himself off the table and onto his own two legs. He noticed that Kilensky was still pointing a gun at his head. "Do you mind?"

"I demand to know who you are!" By this point the attention of the others in the bunker had very much been caught. The Doctor was to hazard a guess that they were not going to choose him over their apparent leader, and this was confirmed when a few of them grabbed their weapons.

The Doctor decided the truth was the best decision he could make – although, of course, a version of the truth they would believe.

"Alright, I'll tell you. Just put the gun down," he said. Not having a gun in his face would make the truth a lot easier.

Kilensky did not immediately comply but Makarovich intervened. "Just do it. He's unarmed anyway." Kilensky glared at the Doctor as he lowered the weapon.

"Now speak," he barked.

"I've been sent here by an extraplanetary organisation," said the Doctor. He was not about to explain to these trigger happy grunts who the Time Lords were of course, but given the Cybermen, he expected them not to be too surprised there was life beyond their little Earth. "My purpose here is to find out the nature of the threat of the Tsar and his Cybermen, and to find someone important within the Winter Palace. That's all." There was a silent pause. "If you like I can help you repair some equipment," he said, hoping such an offering would pacify Kilensky. He didn't expect it would.

He was right. "So you're from the stars just like the Cybermen. They came down and spelt trouble for us all. Who's to say that you won't."

"Nobody. Just my word." The Doctor spoke with authority – Nikolai was already impressed and Kilensky was clearly not holding as well as he'd like. He was certainly not Kazonokov, but then again, Kazonokov would never have pointed a gun at this Doctor in the first place.

"But," said the Doctor. "I can help repair some equipment for you and then I will be on my way and you can forget you ever met me."

"Hah!" said a voice from the other side of the room. "And let you tell the Tsar where we are!"

"Shut up!" shouted Kilensky, and the man slunk back into the corner. "Why do you need to get to the Winter Palace?"

"I'm looking for a woman."

"You'll find plenty in there. The Tsarina, the Grand Duchesses..."

"Not any woman," said the Doctor. "A specific woman."

"Why do you need her?"

"The Time Lo-" The Doctor corrected himself. "The extraplanetary organisation I spoke about told me she was important."

"I say we kill him now," said another voice.

"He's obviously a spy," said another.

"SILENCE!" screamed Kilensky. Nikolai sighed. Kazonokov would never have resorted to such brutal means. Kilensky was a strategist, and a damn good one – his military mind was far beyond Nikolai's and his genius had saved them in many a situation. But he was not a leader of men and it showed. He could not inspire confidence in anything and his treatment of this unarmed man was showing that rather easily.

"All of you get out!" he shouted. The crowd that had surrounded them cleared into a few side rooms leaving just Kilensky and Nikolai alone with the Doctor.

"You say you can repair equipment," he barked.

"I did, yes," replied the Doctor.

Kilensky turned to a nearby weapons rack and grabbed a rifle. He threw it onto the table.

"Fix that," he said.

The Doctor sighed and reached into his jacket pocket, taking out his sonic screwdriver. He pointed it at the rifle and clicked the button. As it whirred around the rifle, he couldn't help but noticing both men watching him intensely. After a few moments he put his sonic screwdriver away, picked up the rifle and passed it back to Kilensky.

"Happy?"

Kilensky examined it for a moment and then put it back.

"Fine," he said. "You have the means to get into the Winter Palace and your motives appear genuine. So you'll be leaving for the palace?"

"That's the plan," said the Doctor firmly.

"Then you will go and do that," he said. "But you take Makarovich with you."

"I really don't think-"  
"I don't care what you think!" he shouted again.

"You don't agree with him do you?" said the Doctor, turning to look at Nikolai.

"I do," he replied. "I can help you get there and get in, plus... there are certain things we need in there."

"Like what?" the Doctor asked. His curiosity had been somewhat piqued but he was mostly asking as he did not want to be led into a stupid suicide mission – although Kilensky did have the gun, meaning he might not have had that much choice. The Doctor decided to reserve judgement on that for now.

"I wouldn't mind about that if I were you," said Kilensky. His sidearm has back in his hand pointing at the Doctor. "I'd just get on with it. I have one last question though Doctor. What knocked you out?"

The Doctor paused. In all this argument he had forgotten about that. The messages he got from that dark figure reinforced his belief in this woman's importance, but in most other ways it was exceptionally disconcerting. Something knew what he was doing here and something did not think this was going to be a short or easy task. When he had time, he needed to think about it more clearly. But for now...

"I don't know," he said. No reason not to be truthful there. "Sorry I can't help."

"It's yourself you're helping, Doctor," grunted Kilensky. "A moment, Makarovich." The two men walked over to the other side of the room, leaving the Doctor standing there apprehensively.

These people were desperate – they had seen the Doctor as an opportunity for whatever it was they needed in the palace, he could see that much. But there were a lot more questions that had been brought up.

"Keep an eye on him, Makarovich," said Kilensky. "If he looks like-"

"He's going to betray me, kill him," said Nikolai in reply. "I understand that sir."

"Then get on with it. This could be our only chance to get him back."

"I understand, sir."

And with that, Nikolai loaded his sidearm and gestured to the Doctor.

(-)

Makarovich gestured to the Doctor and he decided it was best to follow.

"Farewell, Mr Kilensky," said the Doctor.

"Do svidaniya, Doctor," he replied, almost angrily.

The hologram on the outside of the bunker flickered again as the two men left through the door. As it closed, it flickered once more and covered over the entrance. The Doctor could see St Petersburg in the distance – that was where the answers all lay. Or at least, as many of the answers as he could hope for. The two men began their long walk.

(-)

The Tsar watched intently through the window. He needed to stop doubting his associate in matters such as this. Everything was now proceeding according to plan. It was time for the next phase.


	5. Into The Lion's Den

The Doctor and Nikolai had been walking for about ten minutes. The countryside outside the city was just as scarred as the city itself: all the trees died a long time ago, with only the rotting wood remaining in a few scarce locations. The ground beneath them was cracked, frozen mud – any flora died an equally long time ago. Occasionally the Doctor spotted a remnant of human civilisation, decayed and faded but otherwise the only obvious and common feature in the landscape were the holes caused from artillery (the Doctor supposed from their attempts to fight the Resistance) and the occasional pool of toxic sludge or radioactive waste or whatever it was. It was a landscape just as horrifically scarred as the city, albeit with near total silence, aside from the blowing of the wind and the soft pelting of snow.

As such, most of their time walking had been in silence, save for the noise of Nikolai checking his scanner for Cybermen, before the Doctor had finally decided to pipe up.

"Kilensky isn't really your leader is he?" he asked bluntly.

Nikolai glared at him for a moment and then sighed. "No. Our actual leader is a man named Kazonokov." Nikolai paused for a moment. "He was a leader," he continued. "He knew everyone and could inspire confidence in anyone. He always made the right calls based on what we needed to do and what was right for his soldiers. Kilensky is a good man but he's just a soldier. He can't lead like Kazonokov did."

"And is it jumping the gun to say that your presence here might have something to do with Mr Kazonokov?"

"It is not," said Nikolai. "He disappeared a few weeks ago. Kilensky hopes there may be information on what happened to him inside the Winter Palace."

"I wouldn't hold out hope he's still alive," said the Doctor darkly.

"I know it is unlikely-" started Nikolai but the Doctor interrupted.

"No, that isn't what I meant. I wouldn't hope that he's still alive. Because if he is..."

"Then he is a Cyberman," said Nikolai glumly. "Yes. And what about you? What do you really need in the Winter Palace?"

"I told you. I need to find a woman. I think she's a servant. Anastasia Viatov is her name."

"I know nothing of the people in that damned building," said Nikolai. "But you say she is important?"

"She is but we don't know how. We as in the organisation who have tasked me with all this. All I know is that I need to get out of the clutches of the Tsar. Otherwise he'll get the secret of-" He paused realising what he was about to tell Nikolai. "The secret of time travel."

"Time travel?" laughed Nikolai. "Now I've heard everything."

"Believe me," said the Doctor. "You haven't."

It was another fifteen minutes before they reached the edge of the city. Nikolai had pulled out his weapon and told the Doctor to get down, follow him and hide when necessary.

"That gun won't do anything against Cybermen," pointed out the Doctor.

"Reinforced Tiboultium Bullets," said Nikolai. "Stolen Cyber technology. They can't destroy a Cyberman but they can do enough damage to one to give us time to escape if we need it."

"I suspect we probably might," said the Doctor. "Let's go."

They weaved in and out of the ruined buildings as they made their way through the city. It was eerily quiet and after a few minutes Nikolai was beginning to suspect all was not as it seems.

"We should have at least seen a patrol by now. This is too easy."

"Never look a gift horse in the mouth," said the Doctor.

"But what if it's a trap," retorted Nikolai, holding his gun close to his chest as they sheltered in one of the ruined buildings before making another run across the street pattern?

"I'd be surprised if it isn't," replied the Doctor. "But knowing that, we can adapt to it. Now let's go."

Nikolai looked at him, annoyed. "And how do you suppose we do that?"

The Doctor shrugged.

"Are you making this up as you go along?" asked Nikolai crossly.

"Absolutely not," replied the Doctor indignantly. "I'm doing something much more clever than that."

"What?" Nikolai grunted in response.

"Fine, I am making it up as I go along," replied the Doctor. "But it hasn't failed me before."

Nikolai sighed and decided to not waste any more time. He set off, and with the Doctor close behind. they sped off across the street pattern.

(-)

Eventually, they reached the palace. Now they could see Cybermen – littering the perimeter, stationed by every possible entrance. But Nikolai had another way in.

The Doctor followed him for a few moments, trying to glimpse anything on the outside of the palace that could give him clues as to what was going on – but there was nothing. He was so engrossed in this he did not initially notice Nikolai point to one of the ruined buildings.

"Doctor!" he grunted, catching his attention. "In there!"

They cut across the pattern and the Doctor found the ruined building to have collapsed to the basement level.

"This connects to an old sewer," said Nikolai. "Leads right into the basement of the palace."

"These are my best shoes," said the Doctor quietly to himself. "Lead away," he said clearer and louder.

The pair dropped down into the old sewer. Below the ruined outline of the once-beautiful building, the basement had once been filled with wares and goods – this was perhaps the wine cellar of a well-off man, the Doctor wandered? What little remained now had been wasted away by a century of decay, and now it led off into the decrepit sewer. What an incredible smell Nikolai has discovered, the Doctor thought to himself, as he led him in. A short, unpleasant walk later, and they reached what initially seemed like a dead end, before Nikolai knelt down and removed a grating from the bottom of the wall. He crawled through the Doctor duly followed and they found themselves in a large cellar.

"We are here," said Nikolai quietly. He had re-holstered his gun when they entered the sewer, and now his hand twitched by its position on his belt, but the Doctor could see he was restraining himself for now. And he understood why – the cellar was as quiet as anything had been since he had been in St Petersburg. Nobody was here. And indeed, nothing was here either. Both the Doctor and Nikolai would need to look further afield for what they needed.

"How well do you know this place?" asked the Doctor as he surveyed the barren cellar.

"I've only come here a few times," Nikolai replied. "We only come hear to steal technology or get information from spies. But I know it well enough."

"How close are we to the servant's quarters?" That seemed like a logical first place to look.

"Not far. But first we must go to the main computer room. That is where they will have information on Kazonokov. If they have it."

"Won't there be a Cyberman there," the Doctor asked dryly.

"Quite possibly," said Nikolai.

The Doctor decided not to quibble anymore.

The Doctor had not expected the main computer room to be in another cellar, but it soon sounded fairly logical. After all, who would want to ruin one of the Winter Palace's lovely rooms with huge banks of complex computers? Probably someone who would want to convert the whole world into Cybermen, thought the Doctor, but evidently not in this case. And soon enough, they were there, and the Doctor was relieved to find there were no Cybermen.

Nikolai wasted no time in making his way into the room and taking a panel off one of the computers.

"What are you doing," asked the Doctor casually.

"I'm going to tear every hard drive out of these computers to take them back," grunted Nikolai.

"Yes, you could do that... or..." The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver. "Kazonokov was his name, wasn't it?"

"Yes," said Nikolai. "What are you doing?"

"Just a bit of harmless hacking, that's all," said the Doctor. He walked up to a screen and began sonicing it. "Let's see, admin access..."

"ACCESS GRANTED," said a Cyber-voice coming from the computer.

"Look at that," smirked the Doctor. "Now prisoner records..."

"ACCESS GRANTED. INFORMATION ON DRIVE-X-3-A-1."

"And could we possibly see that?" the Doctor mused, more to himself than anything else.

"ACCESS DENIED."

"Drat," said the Doctor. "Best resort to Plan B."

"And what is plan B," asked Nikolai.

"Your plan A. Only you only need to tear out one drive rather than all of them." He began examining the computer banks. "Let's see, X-3-A-1, X-3-A-1..."

"Doctor," said Nikolai alarmingly.

"X-3-A-1..."

"DOCTOR!" he said.

"Yes, what?" He turned around saw a Cyberman standing in the doorway with its wrist blaster out. "Oh."

"Identify yourselves," said the Cyberman, cold and emotionless as ever.

"I'm Doctor Tesla," said the Doctor, putting on a bad Russian accent. "And this is my assistant, Nikolai. We're just-"

"Your presence here is unauthorised. Destroy!"

Nikolai quickly reached into his pocket and brought out a small black ball. Wasting no time, he threw it squarely at the Cyberman. It smacked into its head with a small clink and fell on the floor. The Cyberman looked down at it, in a way that would be bemused if the Cyberman could have felt bemusement, before it exploded in a crack of light. Suddenly, all the computer screens went blank and the Cyberman fell on the floor, as if it had been turned off.

"Crikey," said the Doctor. "That wasn't a highly concentrated EMP charge by any chance was it?"  
"It was," grunted Nikolai, picking it back up and then tossing it to the Doctor, who caught it and examined it briefly. "It was stolen-"

"Stolen Cyber technology, yes," said the Doctor. Without looking up from the EMP charge, he pointed at a computer bank. "The drive you need is in there. I found it just before we got interrupted."

Nikolai went up to it, ripped the panel off and tore all the labelled drive out. "Now we find your woman."

"Hmmm," said the Doctor, finishing his examination of the charge and putting it in his pocket. "Of course, it won't be long before they realise we're here. But given you're sure it's a trap, that isn't a problem anyway."

Nikolai said nothing, instead gesturing, with somewhat of an angry demeanour, towards the exit. The Doctor smiled to himself and followed the gesture.

(-)

A quick run through the complex of cellars to a set of stairs brought them up into the palace proper.

"This is it?" asked the Doctor.

"I think so. It certainly looks shabby enough to be servant's quarters, don't you think? Opulence is only for the Tsar and those who have-"

"Yes, thank you for the social commentary, I don't need it, I very much understand the situation. Let's have a look."

The two stepped out into the corridor. Nikolai was right – it was shabby, especially compared to the opulence the Doctor had seen in his universe's Winter Palace. (He, of course, had made a few trips there throughout the years.) But that was the way of things even without the Cybermen.

It was not long before the Doctor had outpaced Nikolai and was a fair distance in front of them throughout the winding corridors. They had seen no-one, which was why the Doctor was caught off guard when he heard Nikolai shout behind him. He turned to see a figure, mostly obscured by Nikolai's own body, but he could clearly see a knife held to his throat. He could make out that the figure was a woman.

"Don't move!" she yelled from behind Nikolai.

"Or what?" asked the Doctor. "You'll kill him." Slowly walking a few paces forward, he could just about see her face and saw that he had found his important woman.

"I will," she said, although the Doctor could hear the hesitation in her voice.

"I don't think so," said the Doctor, continuing to slowly walk closer. "You barely even know how to use that thing. You're more likely to cut your own finger off than slit his throat."

She said nothing as he continued to walk closer. "I'm here to help you, Ms Viatov."

She let out an audible gasp then strengthened the grip on her knife. "How do you know who I am?"

"I've been sent to help you."

"From who?" she cried. "Don't think I don't know where this fool comes from. I want nothing to do with your Resistance. That's what made him kill my brother." The Doctor could see that had made her angrier.

"He is, but I'm not.. He's simply along for the ride. Please believe me, I'm here to help you."

The Doctor was nearly on them now. He needed to get there before Nikolai's patience ran out and he used physical force to overpower her – which would not help his attempts to get her to trust him.

"The Tsar is holding you here because you're important. If I can get you away from him, I can not only make sure you're safe but make sure countless other people are safe as well."

"Stay back- aargh!" she yelled as Nikolai suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her down to the ground, before letting go and standing back up next to the Doctor.

"Did you have to do that?" the Doctor asked angrily. "I was about to talk her down." The Doctor offered her his hand and got his first proper look at her. She was clearly in her early twenties, with long brown hair, light brown eyes and of slim build. She had clearly not kept herself well while in servitude as her hair was unkept and her face dirty. The Doctor could already see how broken she really was from her servitude, and clearly, her family loss. 'The Time Lords didn't tell me that bit' he thought to himself.

"Get away from me," she hissed. "I want nothing to do with you."

The Doctor got down to her level on the ground. "Look, I know you're frightened and angry and well, who wouldn't be after what you've gone through. But I need to get you away from the Tsar and I need to do it now. Think about that – away from this nightmare and to freedom, where we can work together to make sure that nobody has to go through what you have. And whatever that brutish idiot-" he gestured at Nikolai "-does, I'm not going to hurt you. It's not in my nature." He offered his hand again. "I'm the Doctor. It's nice to meet you Anastasia."

(-)

Anastasia Viatov was indeed frightened and angry. It had been seven months since the Tsar had sent a Cyber army to kill her brother, the only person who had ever cared for her, and capture her, and she had since spent those seven months in the misery of serving a man she loathed and his disgusting Cyber-Empire. This English Doctor seemed pleasant, genuine and honest, but she didn't know if she could trust him. What if this was a test by the Tsar? What if this Doctor would take her straight to him, where he would laugh at her foolishness and tell a Cyberman to shoot her? Anastasia quickly came to the conclusion that the worst she could be after going with the Doctor was dead – and that was better than the life she had now. 'I'm going to regret this' she thought to herself as she took his hand. He pulled her onto her feet as he got up as well.

"I have some questions," she said to the Doctor.

"They'll have to wait," shouted the other man, as Anastasia suddenly noticed the familiar clunk-clunk of Cyber footsteps.

"I think I agree, " said the Doctor, who looked at both of them before shouting "run!" The trio bolted back for the staircase they had came up. Anastasia followed to the two men down into the cellars.

"You don't happen to have another of those EMP charges do you?" yelled the Doctor.

"No," said the other man. "We need most of them back at base. We only get one for each mission. They're too precious."

"Well, I'll have to make do then," said the Doctor, grabbing a small metal tube out of his jacket and holding it over a small black sphere he took out of his coat. All three kept running, with the Doctor in the middle between the other man at the front and Anastasia following them both.

"What the hell is that?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing much," said the Doctor. "I think that just about-"

There was a blinding flash and Anastasia instinctively raised her hand to cover her eyes. When she brought it down again, she saw four Cybermen behind them. Sudden panic took her over, before they all fell to the ground motionless.

"How did you do that?" the other man asked, shock obvious in his voice.

"I reactivated and overpowered the circuits. Pretty simply stuff," the Doctor replied. "Give that an hour or so and I'll be able to do it again. I can show you how to do it with a simple laser lance if you like. I presume you've stolen one from here before."

"Let's go," the man grunted and the Doctor duly followed.

Anastasia was immediately impressed with this Doctor. There was a long way to go before she would trust him though. She had been a woman without hope for too long and hope was not going to come easily to her now. If it was to come though, she sensed the Doctor would be how it would come.


	6. A Story of a Girl

_I do not understand, said the being. This is where you met the person you lost._

"_Yes," said the Doctor. "That was where I met her for the first time."_

_Yet you did not know that she would be so dear to you, the being pondered._

"_Of course not. I had no way of seeing into my own future like that. All she was to me at that point was someone I had to rescue."_

_I cannot comprehend that, said the being. Meeting another being and then not knowing all I would ever know about it. How do you function when all is not immediately apparent._

"_Well," said the Doctor, "it's pretty simple. By knowing other beings, they tell you things about themselves and you tell them things about you. You share experiences, memories. That's how you become friends."_

_Friends? asked the being. What is this?_

"_Probably best we don't go there," said the Doctor. "Do you want to hear the story or not?"_

_Please continue Doctor, said the being. There is so much about your way of life that fascinates me._

"_There's a great deal about my way of life that fascinates me," said the Doctor._

_And that is I think our greatest difference, said the being._

_The Doctor pondered that for a moment. "I think you may be right."_

(-)

The trio soon made their way through the grating, out into the sewer and into St Petersburg. It was dark by now, with the moonlight being all that lit the desolate streets.

The other man had introduced himself to Anastasia as Nikolai Makarovich. She didn't make much of him, just a useless Resistance grunt, but she was at least grateful for what help he had provided, and indeed would provide, as he began to lead them through St Petersburg, trying to shake off any following Cybermen.

Anastasia was sceptical they weren't being followed but the Doctor seemed unconcerned. She suspected he probably was concerned but just didn't want to show it for whatever reason.

After at least half an hour skulking around the city, they finally reached the edge of the ruins and into open country, where the landscape was just as ruinous – but they were at least less likely to run into Cybermen. With the immediate threat gone, Nikolai went up ahead to scan for any nearby Cybermen while the Doctor stayed back with Anastasia.

"There are things I want to know," she said, opening the conversation.

"Oh yes?" said the Doctor. "Well, as it happens there are things I'd like to know. Shall we take turns asking questions?"

"Good idea," she said dryly. "I'll ask first if you don't mind."

"Not at all," he said.

"Why did you come for me?"  
"You want the whole truth?" asked the Doctor.

"The whole truth," she said, her voice getting audibly more annoyed.

"I'm not from this universe. I come from a different universe where things are very similar."  
Anastasia was immediately regretting asking for the whole truth. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm from a universe where the Tsar and the Cybermen do not rule the world in 2020. In fact, the Cybermen never arrived in Russia and the Tsar was deposed in February 1917 and died in 1918. And I'm sure there are countless other differences as well."

"I see," she said.

"You seem remarkably unfazed," he said.

"I've spent my entire life knowing that the Tsar rules with metal men from outer space," she retorted.

"Fair enough," said the Doctor. "My turn. Do you know why the Tsar kept you alive and as a servant?"

She shrugged. "Spite. Revenge for being a family member of someone he thought a traitor. Cruelty. I couldn't say."

"See, I know it's because he somehow needs you to unlock the mystery of time travel."

"Time travel?" she laughed. "Now that is pushing it."

"I time travel as easily as you and I walk now," he replied seriously. "It's nothing to scoff at. But you don't know why you would be important?"

She seemed concerned now. "No. Why would I be important?"

"Is that your question," he asked with an innocent smile on his face.

"Yes! Answer it," she snapped.

"I don't know. It's something I'm hoping to find out at some point. Not been having much luck so far."

"I never thought myself important," she said quietly, her view dropping to the ground for a brief moment. It was like something had struck her – all her life she'd never thought of herself as anything more than that rare person in the Tsar's Russia – someone allowed to live a normal life. As the sister of a noble count, that's all that was remarkable. And when he fell out of favour and was killed by the Tsar, she became even less remarkable as a pitiful servant. And now the Doctor was here saying she was important but not why.

"I believe it's my turn to ask a question," the Doctor interrupted her thinking.

"Go on then."

"If you don't mind my asking, what happened with your brother?"

There was a brief silence before she spoke. "Our father was Count Ilyich Viatov. He was the descendant of a nobleman before the Cybermen came, one of the noblemen the Tsar allowed to continue living a normal life. He was a good man our father, and he had a son – Dmitri. And then a few years later, he had a daughter. But my mother did not survive the second childbirth. It broke my father's heart and he died only a few years later. Without our father we became forgotten, destitute, only not taken for Cyber-conversion because of the help of our uncle. But eventually Dmitri got old enough to run our house himself and became quite a prominent figure among the nobility. But he started looking at the wrong crowds, getting himself involved with people he shouldn't. And then the Tsar came along and put a stop to it, but putting a stop to him." She was holding back tears at this point. "He was kind and clever and he cared about me deeply. Nobody else ever has."

"I'm... sorry to hear that," said the Doctor. It was a story of loss he had heard countless times before in many different ways, but it made it no less sad to him that such a thing could happen and no less infuriating that people were allowed to make those things happen.

Anastasia had regained her composure. "You're the first person who's ever said that to me. The other servants were broken, barely able to talk to anyone else. You're the first kind face I've seen in seven months."

"I'm glad to hear that," said the Doctor. "That's what I always try and do."

"My turn," she said. "What... what are you? What do you do?"

The Doctor shrugged. He'd give it a shot. "I'm the Doctor. I'm a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey. I travel in space and time in my TARDIS, travelling across the universe to protect good people, stop bad people, help never hurt and make sure that justice prevails and injustice fails. I've been doing it for thousands of years, mostly but not always successfully, and this whole business here is yet another example of somewhere where I'm trying to save countless people from the forces of injustice. Although I don't really know enough about what's going on to really say how successful I'm being. That enough for you?"

She couldn't help but laugh. "That sounds like quite a life."

"It is rather," he replied simply. "My people were almost always content to observe but I've never been able to do that. If people need my help, then I give it gladly. Of course, even the Time Lords sit up and take notice when the entire universe is threatened, which is what the Tsar is doing."

"The entire universe? I thought you said you were from a different one?"

"I am. I meant the entire of my universe. Whatever he's doing, it's wrecking havoc with the fabric of space and time in my universe. And even if that isn't a problem, if he gets the secret of time travel from you, then who knows what the Cybermen could do."

"We have to stop them," said Anastasia forcefully. "No more people should suffer because of him."

"We?" said the Doctor with a hint of surprise. "Aren't you getting ahead of yourself."

"I don't think so," she smiled. "If I'm so important, you'll need my help in some way."

The Doctor had to admit she was probably right. He was beginning to warm to this woman, but her nature still bugged him – what was she? Why was she important? These were questions that he needed to have answered.

"I think we're nearly there," he said.

"Nearly where?" she asked. "Oh, no, not the damn resistance."

"The damn resistance," the Doctor confirmed. "I'm afraid I need their help for a few things before we go back."

"Back?" she said shocked. "Back? We're going back?"

"I'm afraid so. We need to find out what's going on here. And to do that I'm going to have to get into that palace and find some information. Even if it wasn't vitally important for saving my universe, my curiosity wouldn't allow me to leave without knowing."

Just then, the hologram flickered and the door swung open.

"This way," said Nikolai.

"What, intro the bunker through the door of the bunker? Your intellectual prowess knows no bounds," snarked the Doctor and the trio entered.

(-)

The Tsar had waited patiently all day for everything to fall into place. His patience had been tested thin but as usual his Associate had been correct about everything. It all had fallen precisely into place. And now he was moments away from total victory. All he had to do was give one final command, and then nothing could stop him. He would have the power he craved and all the opposition would be crushed. The time had come.

He picked up a communicator on the table in front of him inside his study.

"Attack." He said the single word very simply.

"We obey," came the emotionless voice from the other side.


	7. Neatly Laid Plans

"Who the hell is this?" asked Kilensky, loudly and aggressively as the trio entered the bunker.

"Oh, I thought I'd bring the Tsarina in for a chat," said the Doctor. He had work to do and was not interested in the angry, near-paranoid ramblings of Kilensky at this moment in time. Everyone in the bunker looked considerably more angry and annoyed than they did when he left, which was a potential problem – giving them a big advantage over the Cybermen as he planned to do would hopefully pacify them and allow them to be an asset. He just needed Kilensky to shut up and go away, and it looked like a brief moment of sharp sarcasm was doing the trick.

Kilensky turned to Nikolai without indulging the Doctor. "Did you find what we're looking for?"

Nikolai silently held up the hard drive, answering Kilensky's question.

"Did he show any signs of betrayal?" was his next question.

"If I recall correctly," interrupted the Doctor. "You told Makarovich to kill me if I was doing that."

"You weren't supposed to hear that," Kilensky snapped.

"Well, I did. Happily, I am on your side," he said. "Anyway, I've found a way to make your EMP charges reusable, interested?"

Kilensky glared at him. "Yes. I'm very interested."

"Could I borrow a couple then?" the Doctor smiled. Kilensky gestured to a pair of soldiers who immediately went off to fetch what the Doctor needed. They returned a few moments later with two charges which they gave to the Doctor. "Thank you," he smiled at them. They glared at him and returned to what they were doing. "Now, I'm going to need a thermal lance."

Anastasia was surveying her surroundings and had noticed the scruffy resistance soldiers eyeing her in return. Most of them were men but there were a few women as well. They all clearly distrusted her and the Doctor, but Anastasia quickly decided not to pay them any mind. There was something about this place that made her uneasy though, something she couldn't quite put her finger on. It looked incredibly dirty and dishelved, precisely as she expected, and all the people looked pretty similar to their surroundings. What was it that was making her feel so uneasy?

"Are you alright Miss Viatov?" A voice startled her. She looked up to see Nikolai standing there.

"Yes... yes, thanks," she stuttered. "Thanks," she said again, more assuredly.

"I heard some of what you said to the Doctor," he said to her. "I'm... sorry to hear about what happened to you."

She smiled at him briefly. "Thanks but... your life has hardly been all sunshine either."

"You are not wrong," he shrugged. "But to lose the only family you ever had so abruptly... I never knew my family, so I could never have had them taken from me in such a way."

Anastasia suddenly realised she was unearthing a side of this gruff soldier she had not suspected existed. She was surprised and decided to press ahead.

"In some ways that is worse, is it not? To never have those memories?"

"Perhaps," he said. Their eyes locked for a moment – he was taller enough than her so that she had to look up and he had to look down to do so. Anastasia decided she liked this man – although in a different way than the other man she had decided she rather liked.

"Makarovich!" shouted Kilensky – both Anastasia and Nikolai were shocked out of their brief encounter. "I want that drive examined this year if you please!"

Nikolai set himself straight. "Yes, sir. Right away, sir." With one last glance at Anastasia, he set off towards the computer terminals.

"Now you're doing with that little chinwag," piped in the Doctor, "I could use your help, Anastasia."

"Of course," she said and came to his side.

"I should point out of course not for your expertise in complex electronic weaponry, but for you ability to hand tools to me," he said curtly.

"Thank you, _genial'nost_" she said sarcastically. "I had worked that bit out."

He had taken a seat at the side of the bunker and had already taken apart one of the EMP charges. She took a seat next to him.

"I think," he said, probing the charge using his sonic screwdriver, "it is my turn to ask a question."

"Oh yes?" she said. "I'm really not that interesting."

"Oh but you are," he said. "Sonic lance."

"What?"

He sighed and pointed using a free finger. "That thing."

"Oh." She picked it up and handed it to him.

"You said that the only person you really knew was your brother? What about all the other nobles the Tsar allowed to live normal lives?"

"Ha," she said. "Sorry, but... my brother met them every now and again, to conduct business. They were a bunch of _svolach_. Too happy to suck up to the Tsar, all for trinkets and sniffs of power they would never have."

"So who did you spend your time with?" he asked. "Sonic screwdriver."

She knew what that was and passed it to him. "I think it's my turn to ask a question."

"I'll owe you one," he said, all while not looking up from the EMP charge.

"I didn't spend my time with anyone. Apart from my brother, when he was around."

"I see, and how did you-"

He was interrupted by the lights going out and an alarm sounding. "Uh oh" was all he could say.

(-)

Nikolai had taken the hard drive over to their main computer. He had to admit to feeling a certain elation – if this had the information that he hoped it did, then the Resistance would be reinvigorated. At the very least, it was put their minds at ease – either way, Nikolai was feeling a sense of genuine excitement for the first time in a long time.

Of course, usually he wouldn't have taken such a risk in plugging in a potentially hostile drive into their main computer, but all the secondary and backup computers had stopped working a while ago. And even if they hadn't, Nikolai and the fellow Resistance soldiers that had joined him, eager to learn what had happened, were too elated to care. After integrating it into the system for a few moments, they were ready to open the files on the drive. Once they did it, they instantly, however, regretted it. As he plugged the drive in and hit start, all the lights and computers went out. Suddenly, panic shot across the room as everyone realised what had happened.

"Uh oh," said the Doctor, putting the EMP charge he was working on into his pocket.

"Ready to defend!" shouted Kilensky as an order across the room. All the soldiers quickly grabbed weapons and grabbed every table, cabinet and box they could find, quickly pushing them across the room and creating defensive positions facing the door. Within a minute every soldier had taken up a position, weapon in hand, kneeling behind a table waiting for the attack.

"If I find this is your doing-" Kilensky started at the Doctor.

"It isn't," he replied. "I think I know who's doing it is."

Anastasia piped up. She, along with the Doctor, had jumped up to join Kilensky and Nikolai at the front of the room. "It was a trap, wasn't it?"

"I suspected as much. I didn't have much choice but to play along with it but now..." The Doctor looked genuinely concerned, in a way that Anastasia had not seen from him before. Then it hit her – the situation was now out of his control, and that was what made him very concerned and uncomfortable. Suddenly, everyone was interrupted by a booming voice that they all, in one way or another, recognised.

"What do you mean, a trap?" barked Kilensky.

"We got into the Winter Palace too easily," he said. "And were allowed to escape it too easily."

"And you didn't think-"

"Of course I did!" barked the Doctor back. "But I needed her and you needed your precious drive. We didn't have a great deal of choice but to go and spring that particular trap."

"So what now?" asked Anastasia.

"Now," said the Doctor. "We wait. Wait for the trap to be set into motion."

"I hope you're prepared for this," Anastasia said quietly to the Doctor.

"So do I," he replied.

(-)

Kilensky had grabbed the biggest rifle he could find and stood behind one of the pillars holding up the bunker roof. The only people left not in cover were the Doctor and Anastasia. She suddenly realised this – why wasn't she behind cover? Perhaps it was an implicit trust of the Doctor that he knew that it wasn't necessary? Or perhaps she had just forgotten. She wasn't quite sure.

"And how will this trap be set in motion, Doctor?" yelled Kilensky.

"I imagine something like-"

"Greetings, Doctor"

The panic that had spread across the room instantly settled into silence, and all eyes turned on the main computer screen where the figure of the Tsar of All Earth was unmistakable.

"It's him," whispered Anastasia. The man who had killed her brother and enslaved her. There he was, looking as hateful and smug as ever.

"Greetings," replied the Doctor. "Your Majesty."

"I must thank you, Doctor. Without you, none of this would have been possible," the Tsar said.

"Oh? And how have I done that?"

"Not only did you lead the Resistance to the virus drive that they thought contained the location of their old leader, who I of course captured in anticipation of this moment, and not only did you lead me straight to the base I have been looking for for years, you did so in a way that allowed me to disable their EMP defences with ease. It's almost as if you're working for me. Which of course, you aren't. Nothing but your own stupidity has led you here," he almost laughed.

"You're going to have to do better than that," said the Doctor, Anastasia noticing some confidence returning to his face. "That's all stuff I expected and prepared for. You couldn't have made it more obvious it was a trap if you had written trap on the side of the Winter Palace in red spray paint."

"Is that so," said the Tsar. "Well you did indeed spring the obvious trap. All of it was of course worth it just so you get Ms Viatov. Hello, my dear. Doing well?"

"Go to hell!" yelled Anastasia, before she felt the Doctor kick her sharply. The message was fairly clear – shut up and let him deal with it.

"As it happens, I do have her. And without her-"

"I can't get the secret of time travel? I can't use your precious Time Lord secret to dominate the universe? And that's where you're wrong. I confess she has some importance, but not nearly enough that I can't use her biodata rather than her herself."He held up a small drive in front of the camera and smiled.

"Biodata?" The Doctor sounded genuinely shocked which concerned Anastasia greatly. The confidence was wiped from his face - she thought he might still somewhat have it under control. But the rug had been pulled under him – they were in trouble now.

"And besides, it's not time travel I need her for. No, no, no, Doctor, that's where you came in. Tell me. does this look familiar?"

The camera changed from the Tsar to an image of the entrance to the Winter Palace, where a Cyber-Transport was unloading a shape alien to everyone in the room – except the Doctor. It was a blue wooden box.

"The TARDIS..." The Doctor was now lost for words.

"You see, I leaked the information about this universe to the Time Lords of your universe precisely so you would come. The only Time Lord with a TARDIS not on your home planet - you were the perfect target. And now we can tear your TARDIS apart, learn how it works and dominate time and space."

"What does it mean, Doctor?" asked Nikolai.

"It means... it means we're finished," said the Doctor simply.

"Everything that happened today happened to our design," said the Tsar. "You led me to the Resistance, gave me a TARDIS and rid me of that pesky girl. And now as none of you are even remotely useful anymore, I'm afraid I have some bad news..."

Everyone's attention was turned to a bang on the door.

"Ready!" cried Kilensky across the room. The sounds of weapons readying dominated the room for a few moments.

"Take cover!" shouted Nikolai in the direction of Anastasia and the Doctor.

"You sick bastard!" screamed Anastasia at the screen. "All you ever do is kill."

"You misunderstand me, Ms Viatov. All I want is a better world."

"And your better world is one of death and suffering."

The Tsar laughed. "Perhaps. But your opinion will soon be academic Ms Viatov. Anything to say Doctor."

Wasting no more time, Anastasia jumped behind cover. All weapons pointed at the door.

(-)

CRASH!

The door was beaten in and the Cybermen entered.

"FIRE!" shouted Kilensky. Gunfire filled the room, followed by smoke, both from the guns and the damage from the initial round of Cyber-fire. The Reinforced Tiboultium Bullets made a few dents in the Cybermen, but no serious damage.

That first round of Cyber-fire had claimed its victims. A number of soldiers slumped dead – Anastasia could feel the panic become uncontrollable. She knelt behind one of the overturned tables with Nikolai, holding his rifle just above the top of the table, firing bullet after bullet with no effect.

"Goodbye, Doctor. It has been a pleasure," laughed the Tsar. "Destroy them!"

"Destroy, destroy, destroy," said the Cybermen flatly and without emotion.

The Doctor, who had not taken cover, walked forward to the level of barricades. The Cybermen, weapons outstretched, ready to fire once more, marched forward, as the Doctor stood defiantly with seemingly nothing between him and the armies of the Cyber-Tsar.

"Destroy, destroy, destroy!"

Anastasia watched in panic as the metal men advanced on the Doctor, ready to kill...

(-)

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


End file.
